General

The Basil Hetzel Institute for Translational Health Research is the productive research arm of The Queen Elizabeth Hospital. The Institute, a $19 milliion purpose-built research facility, was opened in March 2009 and is located on Woodville Road opposite the main campus of The Queen Elizabeth Hospital. It is located 15 minutes from the Adelaide CBD in the city's western suburbs.

All research departments have strong links to the clinical divisions within the Hospital underpinning The Institute's overarching focus on translational health research. This 'bench to bedside' approach is at the forefront of an emerging area of medical science that aims to improve public health through collaborative discoveries and innovations in patient care, education and research.

Research conducted by The Institute covers a broad spectrum, exploring causes, potential improvements in therapeutic outcomes and the prevention of some of the most serious and common health conditions facing our community today. These include cancer, cardiovascular disease, arthritis, kidney disease, diabetes, respiratory diseases and stroke.

The Institute also has long-standing teaching and research affiliations with the University of Adelaide, the University of South Australia and Flinders University, which offer a range of undergraduate and postgraduate research training opportunities. Several academic departments, including the University of Adelaide Disciplines of Surgery, Medicine and Psychiatry, are based at the Hospital.

Click on each individual Program for more information: 

• The Health Observatory; 
• The Centre for Surgical Evidence, Assessment and Training (SEAT); 
• The Centre for Inflammatory Disease Research (CIDR); 
• The South Australian Translational Centre for Renal Centre; 
• The Vascular Disease and Therapeutics Research Group (VDTRG).

The Hospital Research Foundation has committed in excess of $5 million to these Programs which began in 2009. The Foundation also has funded more than $1 million in equipment for The Institute.

The Queen Elizabeth Hospital was opened in 1954 and quickly established a reputation as a leader in medical research. In 1965, Australia's first successful kidney transplant operation was performed at the Hospital.

The Hospital's research arm is named in honour of one of Australia's 'masters of medicine', Professor Basil Hetzel, AC.

Professor Hetzel was the first Professor of Medicine at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital and his research linking iodine deficiency with intellectual disability and deformities in infants has had a profound impact on global public health.

His work found that many common illnesses for people in developing countries, such as goitre and cretinism, could be prevented by introducing iodine into the diets of pregnant women. This led to an international campaign to incorporate iodised salt into the diets of communities where iodine was lacking.

The initial work for his project was carried out by Professor Hetzel's team at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital from 1964-68. Its significance for humanity on a global scale remains an inspiration for today's researchers.

Over the decades, Professor Hetzel has maintained a close interest in research conducted at The Institute and remains one of its great supporters. In March 2004, the National Trust named Professor Hetzel as one of Australia's National Living Treasures.